The Multivan is one of the greatest motor vehicle icons of the present day. Now the time has come to write another chapter in this story of success. With a completely new Multivan. Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles will be celebrating its world premiere in June. Initial sketches now provide a preview of how the next Multivan will look. Head designer Albert Kirzinger: “The new Multivan bears the unmistakable genes of the world’s best-known MPV design.”
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has taken the liberty of recreating the Multivan from top to bottom. The design and appearance of one of the most flexible and most original vehicle concepts on the market has thus been realigned. Nevertheless it remains the case that the DNA of its famous predecessors plays a key part in shaping the design of the new Multivan generation too. “Taking a major step forward, we have further enhanced the unmistakable character of this iconic vehicle, while still remaining loyal to the typical Bulli line. We consciously invoke, for example, the horizontal character line that runs around the body of a T3”, says Kirzinger. The monolithic design is thus also a homage to the first generation of the Multivan, which made its debut more than 35 years ago. The new Multivan also incorporates an element of styling from the T4 and thus from the second generation: the bonnet stretched laconically forward beneath the windscreen. Head designer Kirzinger: “The DNA of the T’s multifaceted story lives on. In a completely new Multivan, which is nevertheless a typical Bulli at first sight. With a characterful, endearing look and clear, timeless design.”
The now fifth generation of the Multivan offering up to seven seats is based for the first time on the Modular Transverse Matrix. In conjunction with that comes an extension of the wheelbase with correspondingly striking proportions. The new Multivan is also wider. In line with that, the track width has increased as well. At the same time, Albert Kirzinger’s team has given the new Multivan a somewhat lower profile. In the interplay of the proportions, a powerful overall look is thus created. The designers also achieved great advances with the aerodynamics. The aim: lower fuel consumption, greater range.